Now Russia planning to beat Apple iPhone with their own smartphone

Russia's answer to the iPhone will be much cheaper but won't compromise on quality.

If Russian News Agency TASS is to be believed then Russia will soon have its own iPhone. Russian company Rostec is working on building the answer to the iPhone which will go on sale in 2018 for a starting price of only $130. The news was first released by TASS and has since gone viral on social media.

“Russian iPhones will be produced by Ruselectronics, a part of the state-owned Rostec corporation,” it reported.

“Rostec will produce the Russian answer to the iPhone,” the head of the electronics company, Igor Kozlov, said. He told reporters the phone would be not compromise on quality and would be comparable to the Apple iPhone but would cost far cheaper to purchase.

“In 2018, we will have our own, domestic iPhone, which will cost only about $130,” Kozlov said on Thursday. Rostec was founded in 2007 to further Russia’s high-tech industry. Its general director is appointed by the Russian president.

The Ruselectronics holding company was set up in the early 2009 on the base of the state holding with the same name. The holding unites enterprises specializing in the design and manufacture of electronic components, products, materials and equipment for their manufacture, as well as microwave devices and semiconductor devices.

The company raises 15% of its revenues from civilian products and 85% from military products. Currently, Ruselectronics is in the process of restructuring and plans to strengthen its department for production of civilian products. By 2025, civilian products will account for 40% of revenues, the report by TASS said.

The iPhone 7 32 GB model costs more to build than any other iPhone in history at around $220. Building a smartphone of the quality of Apple’s iPhone will be a daunting task for a lesser cost given the obsession of the California based tech company for perfection. If Russia does manage to build “the answer to iPhone” at the said cost, it sure will be mean feat but only time will tell whether they will succeed.